NACC Quebec

The bulk cement carrier NACC Quebec arrived at pier 27 late Tuesday (January 7).

The ship operates for McInnis Cement from its Port-Daniel, QC plant on the Gaspé peninsula. During the St.Lawrence Seaway season the ship runs into the Great Lakes, but in winter shifts to coastal runs to the US.

The ship has flown the Canadian flag (port of registry Gaspé) since May 19, 2017, after it was rebuilt from a conventional bulk  carrier for Nova Algoma Cement Carriers.  It has called in Halifax on a few occasions, most recently in March 2019, and has been referred to in this blog:

http://shipfax.blogspot.com/2017/08/nacc-quebec-quebec-report-10.html
http://shipfax.blogspot.com/2018/01/weather-bomb-part-1.html

The ship has been a lot more co-operative for photos in the past, particularly when it passed the pilot station at Trois-Rivières-Ouest one August evening in 2018:

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Quebec visitors

Two ships with Quebec connections made pit stops in Halifax today. Their Canadian careers are oddly parallel, though they are not connected in any way. Both came to the Canadian flag one day apart and both were registered in ports close to base of operations, rather than one of the larger ports.

First in was the geared bulker Ferbec owned by CSL. The ship is returning from the winter working under the Barbados flag (port of registry Bridgetown), and is in port to be reflagged Canadian. The ship was brought to Canada in 2017 to work a contract for Rio Tinto Fer et Titaine (RTFT).  Prior to that CSL had run the ship in Australia since 2010 as CSL Melbourne. It was built in 2002 by Nantong COSCO in China as Orientor, and also renamed Orientor 2 the same year. It and is a handymax bulker of 27,198 gt, 49,052 dwt, equipped with four cranes and clams. It is the only ship in CSL's domestic fleet that is too large for the St.Lawrence Seaway.

 Ferbec arrived in Halifax in March 2018 to be re-flagged.

CSL first registered the ship in Sorel, QC May 18, 2017, but it has been flagged out for the last two winters. During the navigation season it operates a constant shuttle between Havre St-Pierre and Sorel-Tracy. It carries ilmentite ore from the Tio open pit mine 43km inland from Havre St-Pierre. The mine produces blast rock which is crushed to 7.5cm and transferred by the Chemin de fer de la Rivière Romaine railroad to Havre St-Pierre. Once loaded on the ship it is transported to RTFT's reduction plant in Sorel-Tracy. There the ilmenite is reduced to its major components, iron and titanium dioxide. The latter is the main source for white pigment in paints and many other products.

 Upbound on the St.Lawrence river with a full load of ilmenite.

Ferbec transports enough ore each season to meet most of RTFT's needs. However they also have mines in Madagascar and Africa which are less expensive to operate, despite harsh criticism on environmental issues. The Tio mine also stockpiles its production and does not work year round. Last year it operated for 30 weeks, starting in mid-March with a  four week holiday break in July and shutting down in early November. For the previous two years it only operated for 24 weeks. This year it is expected to operate for 32 weeks. (There is year round activity at the mine site, but that is related to maintenance.)


Ferbec 's last port was Belfast, and it is expected to resume service by the end of the month.
As a footnote, Rio Tinto renamed the operation when it took over. It was previously known as Quebec Iron and Titanium (QIT) and some of its operations still use those initials. Also the mine is near a lake called Lac Allard, but since there is another Lac Allard in the Laurentian region north of Montreal, the RTFT mine area is now referred to as Tio or Lac Tio.

A bulk carrier of a very different sort arrived at noon time. NACC Quebec is specialized cement powder carrier. Built as the general cargo ship Tenace in 2011 by Tuzla Gemi Endustrisi, in Turley, it was converted in 2016 to transport bulk cement and to unload via a special pneumatic system. It can also carry different grades of cement. As part of the conversion, carried out in China, it was fitted with an Alfa Laval Pure SOx (sulphur dioxide) exhaust gas scrubber. Its tonnages are now 10,243 gt, 15,286 dwt.

The ship is owned by NACC Shipping Canada Ltd, a joint venture of Algoma Central Marine and Nova Marine Holdings of Switzerland.The ship operates from the Ciment McInnis facility in Port Daniel-Gascons, QC, and delivers the cement seasonally to the Great Lakes region. In winter it delivers to Providence, RI and Bronx, NY. It was first registered in Gaspé on May 19, 201, and has remained under Canadian flag year round.

 An unmistakable sight on the St.Lawrence with its odd funnel, containing an exhaust gas scrubber, and its unusual unloading system.

McInnis (founded by the Beaudoin family, descendants of the Bombardier founder) quarries the limestone, produces Portland cement, and loads ships all at the same site on the south shore of the Gaspé peninsula on the Baie de Chaleur. Despite environmental concerns over its huge carbon emission footprint, the $1.5 billion operation has created jobs and pays a hefty tax bill in an area of low employment. Cost overruns estimated at more than $600 mn forced the main investors, Quebec government agencies, to take over control of the operation. They tried to sell the operation to recoup their losses, but bids were too low and so far its production has not risen to break even levels. 

Atlantic Willow stands by to assist the ship into pier 9B. The scrapes on the ship's hull are signs of many passages through the St.Lawrence Seaway.

The ship has remained Canadian all winter, although someone should touch up the acute accent on its port of registry. 

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Weather Bomb - Part 1

The huge storm that swept up the US east coast arrived in Nova Scotia this morning and in Halifax by late morning. Extreme high winds and driving rain last until early evening when it became eerily calm and the rain virtually stopped. Widespread power outages included Ship Central (home of Shipfax). A storm surge is expected at high tide 2300 hrs this evening.
Shipping activity ground to a halt as ships either held off the port or went to anchor or to safer berths. A brief roundup:


. NACC Quebec had been en route to Baltimore Providence from Port-Daniel, QC with cement, but after anchoring off Lockeport/Shelburne opted to come to Halifax for better holding, and anchored in Bedford Basin.

 NACC Quebec in more serene conditions. Operated by Nova Algoma Cement Carriers, operating out of the McInnis Cement plant in Port-Daniel, QC to US and Canadian ports. The unusual funnel houses a Pure SOx exhaust scrubber. Built as Tenace in 2011 by Tuzla Gemi Endustrizi in Turkey as a bulk carrier, the ship was converted in 2016-17 to carry cement.Tonnages: 9,286 grt, 13,800 dwt.



. Radcliffe L. Latimer arrived late Thursday and went directly to anchor instead of pier 25-26.
. Oceanex Sanderling anchored in Bedford Basin.
. CCGS Cape Roger arrived at BIO, CCGS Sir William Alexander remains alongside.
. Asterix was to move to an anchorage Wednesday, but found space at pier 9c. (Her huge superstructure would be subject to windage such that anchoring might not be feasible). During the day the tug Atlantic Spruce was tethered alongside, but was not needed by evening, and tied up nearby
. Offshore suppliers Burin Sea, Trinity Sea, Siem Hanne and Atlantic Condor are all tied on at pier 9c.
. Algoma Dartmouth moved to pier 9.
. IT Intrepid remains at pier 9A,
. Tug Atlantic Fir moved to pier 6 at Halifax Shipyard alongside the barge Atlantic Sealion
. The pilot boats Nova Pilot and Scotia Pilot moved to the inner face of Jetty November Lima in Dartmouth.[see below]
. Metro Transit cancelled all ferry and bus service.
. The Bridge Commission closed the A. Murray MacKay bridge for a time, then partially opened but kept it closed to high sided vehicles.
. Tugs Atlantic Oak and Atlantic Willow are tied on the inside of the IEL dock.
. Irving Oil tanker Acadian sailed at 0800 hrs - the last ship to arrive or sail for the time being.
. Nolhanava remains nestled inside pier 36.

Outside:
The cargo ship Thorco Logos (a light ship, with only cable racks in its hold) opted to leave its anchorage position in Bedford Basin and head out to sea  late last night.

In St. Margaret's Bay, just to the south of Halifax the heavy lift ship Symphony Star anchored off Mill Cove. It arrived at the pilot station last night and went directly to the Bay. It has cargo for pier 27-28.
Also nearby is Bomar Rebecca. The Tropical Shipping container ship sailed from Halifax last night.

In the Bay of Fundy, the container ship Zim Constanza bound from Halifax for New York is hove to or slow steaming. It left Halifax late last night. (Numerous other ships are also in the mouth of the Bay, bound for Saint John).

. Two arrivals scheduled for today, Budapest Bridge and Atlantic Sky, have been held off, with no definite arrival time scheduled yet. Arrival times will depend on conditions being suitable for the safe boarding of pilots. This will be a test for Halifax's "new" pilot boats that are much lighter and have lower freeboard than the previous boats. There is some suggestion already that they may not be as capable as their predecessors.

Winds are predicted to build up again overnight tonight and remain high until mid-day tomorrow. Temperatures will also drop from the relatively balmy +5c of today to -9C.


Part 2 to follow tomorrow: 

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NACC Québec - Quebec Report #10

The cement carrier NACC Québec was upbound this afternoon on its second trip to the Seaway. On its first trip last week,it discharged at a new terminal in Cote-Ste-Catherine.  This trip it will be going to Oshawa.

Built by Tuzla Gemi in Tuzla, Turkey in 2011 as  Tenace, the ship was brought into Canadian registry this spring by NovaAlgoma Cement Carriers (NACC). A 50/50 joint venture between Algoma and Nova Marine Holdings SA of Luxembourg the company was established to carry cement in bulk form. This particular ship is in dedicated service to the new McInnis cement plant in Port Daniel, on the south coast of the Gaspé peninsula. It will also be making international voyages seasonally.

The ship started life as a conventional bulk carrier of 9286 grt, 14,600 dwt, but with a special cement loading and discharging system installed its revised tonnages are 10,243 grt, 14,906 dwt. Immediately recognizable by the forest of cargo handling pipes, and the outrageous funnel, the ship will become a regular sight on the river.

The ship was in Halifax briefly August 12.

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